Slashing $1.75 Billion dollars is legislative shock therapy applied to Florida’s public schools.
Florida Legislators are on a mission to destabilize and cause great pain to our children, their teachers and their schools. They have decided that giving away billions in corporate tax exemptions and loopholes is more important to them than funding public education.
Florida’s “budget crisis” is a wholesale deception designed to achieve a political goal. Florida has the money to fulfill its constitutional duty to the children of this state but its political leaders have repeatedly failed in their duty.
It’s pretty simple: $5 Billion dollars in yearly, out-of-state corporate exemptions means a $1.75 Billion dollar cut to our children’s schools.
Governor Scott and the Florida Legislature are wrong to inflict intentional pain on our children and their schools. By cutting $1.75 Billion from public education, they are causing the crisis. In addition, the legislature is siphoning away billions of dollars from Florida schools to pay for private voucher and charter schools that are not held to the same standards or requirements. The result is separate, un-equal and profoundly unfair.
School districts across Florida are telling the truth: 4 day school weeks, firing school resource officers, losing art, music, critical high school electives and shutting down sports are just a few of the options. Districts will no longer be able to afford transportation, hire substitutes or keep libraries open.
Florida’s proposed budget relies too heavily on Federal money and increased property taxes. Once again, hardworking Florida taxpayers, meager teachers’ salaries and Federal Jobs money will be used by legislators to balance this shameful public education budget.
We are not getting what we paid for.
Click here to find your county and an easy, point-and-click list of your local legislators. Contact them and hold them accountable for their votes.
Tell Governor Scott and your legislators that we don’t like what they’re doing to our children’s public schools. Tell them it is fiscally irresponsible and morally corrupt to impose deep budget cuts that harm our children and their schools. Moving federal money around and taking money away from our school districts is not working for us.
Tell them that their budget “crisis” story wears thin when they give away $5 billion dollars every year to out-of-state corporations. Click here to email Governor Scott, Senate President Haridopolos and Speaker of the House Cannon. Tell them to stop causing the crisis and start collecting the revenues that are rightfully owed to the people of Florida. They work for us.
As parents we must ask the hard questions, demand action and above all protect our children from harm.
